The following description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
There are numerous devices and methods known in the art to deter birds or other animals from nesting or perching on various structures. Depending on the particular bird to be deterred, and especially depending on the site of installation, the configuration of such devices may vary considerably. For example, where birds need to be deterred on a relatively confined space (e.g., a rim or ledge of a building), spikes or electric shock track may be installed.
However, spikes and electric shock track are often impractical and unsightly, and can't be removed and replaced easily. This is especially important for boats or other craft or structures where the user wants to have the bird deterrents installed on a periodic basis. For such situations, it is known to use bird deterrents having a center post and radially extending arms that rotate in the wind. Typically, such deterrents include a protective or functional terminal portion on the distal end of the arm (e.g., a sail) to better engage with the wind, act as an additional visual deterrent, and/or to provide physical protection against unintended contact. Examples for such devices are described in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2007/0074467 to Zecher, WIPO Publication No. WO 2010/135771 to Martin, U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,036,278, 6,640,506 to Landers, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,343,651 and 5,452,536 to Chatten, U.S. Pat. No. 4,074,653 to Pember, U.S. Pat. No. 3,292,319 to McCarthy, and U.K. Patent No. 2,405,072 to Fruin.
All publications identified herein are incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication or patent application were specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference. Where a definition or use of a term in an incorporated reference is inconsistent or contrary to the definition of that term provided herein, the definition of that term provided herein applies and the definition of that term in the reference does not apply.
While the above devices prevent various birds from perching or nesting on the protected structure, various disadvantages nevertheless remain. For example, existing devices allow for substantial rotation of the sail limiting its effectiveness. Moreover, existing devices do not fully appreciate the potential versatility of rotating deterrent devices.
Thus, there is still a need for improved rotatable bird deterrent devices.